Jims' Landing Boat Launch Access and Parking Improvements

  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requests comments on the draft Environmental Assessment. It is important that reviewers provide their comments at such times and in such a manner that they are useful to the agency’s preparation of the environmental assessment and completion of the NEPA process. Therefore, comments should be provided prior to the close of the comment period and should clearly articulate the reviewer’s concerns and contentions. A 45-day public comment period will begin on May 5, 2021 and end on June 19, 2021. Public comments on the draft Environmental Assessment may be submitted during the May 19th public meeting, or by U.S. Post or email. U.S. Post: PND Engineers, Inc. ATTN: Jims’ Landing 1506 W. 36th Ave Anchorage, AK 99503 Email: jimslanding@pndengineers.com

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) is seeking public comments on the draft Environmental Assessment of the Jims’ Landing Access Improvements project on the Kenai River. The Kenai River is important habitat for spawning salmonids and other fish species. The Service proposes improvements to the Jims’ Landing facility, consisting of transportation access, parking areas, and boat ramp improvements. The Jims’ Landing boat ramp and parking facility is within the Skilak Wildlife Recreation Area, which is a component of the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. This recreational site offers important recreational opportunities (e.g., boat ramp for boat launch and retrieval on the upper Kenai River) between the Russian River and Skilak Lake. The purpose of this proposed action is to address recreation needs, public safety, and access requirements of Jims’ Landing day use facility by improving the boat launch and retrieval area, and facilitating traffic and pedestrian flow with improved road...

USFWS is renaming this facility from Jim’s Landing to Jims’ Landing to more accurately reflect the origin of the site’s name, named after two men named Jim. Usage of the new name, while unfamiliar, is intentional and at the direction of USFWS.

This post provides a project update, summarizes the initial public scoping phase, and provides information on the project schedule. A virtual public meeting was held on December 8, 2020, and a comment period followed, ending on January 8, 2021. If you were unable to attend the meeting, you can find the recording and meeting summary in a previous blog post. Comments received during the comment period consisted of 21 comments during the meeting, 45 comments received online via the website and comment collector, 5 comments from the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge’s Facebook page, and a letter from ANILCA Program Coordinator. All but two public comments were in support of the project, and generally, the comments were in support of Option B and C along with Offsite Parking Option 1. Based on these comments, and in order to minimize impacts to wetlands and riparian areas, Option B will be carried forward with some modifications to accommodate preferable parking, vehicle circulation, and stagi...

On December 8, 2020, PND Engineers and Corvus Design hosted a public meeting to discuss the three schematic options developed for the Jim's Landing Boat Launch. Below are the items discussed and feedback received from the public during the meeting. MEETING MINUTES Jim’s Landing Boat Launch Public Scoping December 8, 2020 5:30-7:30pm (AKST) Location: Zoom Recorded by: Alexandra West Jefferies Submitted: December 11, 2020 Click here to access the recording Passcode: ?4UT4+w@ Attendance: FWS: Amy Klein, Steve Miller PND: Paul Kendall, Alex Jefferies, Anna Kopitov Corvus: Peter Briggs, Linda Pringle   Items Discussed: Introduction Project team introductions                                                    ...

The Schematic Design Report describes the purpose of the project, design criteria, limiting factors of the site, and preliminary design solutions. This background information, explanatory text, and project criteria define a site program and contribute to the development of a preferred option. Click this link for the full report Three options have been developed that address the project scope for the boat launch and adjacent facilities. Through the overall planning and design process, we will move toward a single preferred alternative that reflects the preferred design criteria. The following three options are as follows: Option A:  Prioritizes minimizing the footprint of development and minimizing impacts to wetland and riparian areas. The primary objective is to improve the existing site conditions with minimal development into sensitive habitats. Option B: Prioritizes efficient vehicle circulation, minimizing impacts to the riparian shoreline area and wetlands. The primary object...

 A Schematic Design Report will be made available on this site on or before December 1st. This document will be the basis for the December 8th public meeting.